Le Disko
by Marimo
Summary: Amidst the overwhelming horde of people, would he be able to keep her head above water? Or would he simply let her drown in the throbbing beat of Le Disko? VH
1. Dance on Fire

Eh, just having a bit of fun. I'm going with the fact that this is a one-shot, but if anyone wants this to continue, I'll go with that, too.

Song is "Le Disko" by Shiny Toy Guns. The music video inspired me to write this.

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**Le Disko

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**

They said she would have fun. That she needed to loosen up.

Hitomi signed, running a hand through her boyishly cut brown hair. But a dance club? That was a little too much. As soon as the twenty year old had stepped into the dark, glow-stick and strobe light lit room, she knew it was a mistake. The thumping rave music filled her ear drums, and the entire intense atmosphere was overwhelming.

Yukari, at least, was having fun. Squealing and grabbing a few spare glow-stick necklaces, she had run off to get herself a drink, reminding Hitomi as she left to have a bit of fun.

Feeling uncomfortable in her mini-skirt and tight black shirt, picked out by Yukari, of course, the track-runner slowly walked towards the dance floor. Her outfit was nothing compared to what some of these other girls were wearing, of course. She gulped as a guy walked past with two girls on leashes. Cursing her innocence, Hitomi spotted the crowded main dance area of the club. The entire crowd was a huge mass, moving along to the music. Pinpricks of glow sticks and mini strobe lights stood out amongst the throng.

Hitomi couldn't hold in a shiver as her eyes took in the scene. It was a gathering of half-naked, sweating bodies, dancing and moving to the techno beat. The dark light prevented her from seeing each individual face, but she could see that every person was paired with someone else, some pressed so close against each other that it was hard to tell them apart. Nervously, she took a step back, but stopped herself before going any farther.

"No, Hitomi, if you want any self-confidence, you've gotta go in there…" she scolded herself firmly, clenching her fists and going towards the pulsating horde once more. Taking in a shaky breath, Hitomi registered a strange feeling. If she entered that crowd, with such a close, hot atmosphere, would she get enveloped in it all?

The music was fast, the beat extreme, the ravers' movements erotic. Some strobe lights were switched on. That's when she saw _him._

Dancing by himself, sometimes with someone else, was a stunning image. Gorgeously messy black hair was being tossed about in harmony with the music. His eyes were closed, not in a state of concentration, but total relaxation. His movements were fluid and passionate. He had let himself go, dancing in any which way, anywhere the music took him. Hitomi took in a deep breath, realizing that her lungs had stopped working for a moment. The guy stood out in the crowd, for sure. A tight, sleeveless red shirt, and simple jeans, but it only added to his intense image. The green-eyed girl couldn't take her eyes off of him.

Enthralled, she didn't know how much time had passed. It could have been seconds, minutes, hours, it didn't matter. His image burned into her brain. As the music was drawing to a close, so was her disconnection with reality. A few blinks cleared away the mist in her eyes. A vague reminder that she had to find Yukari surfaced. The incessant thump of the music came to a smooth halt and Hitomi looked up briefly to see if she could spot the guy in the red-shirt. She could.

Raking a well-tanned hand through his hair, his eyelids slid open and he lifted his head to look around. Almost as if in slow-motion, he looked directly up at Hitomi, meeting her gaze. The track-star gasped, stumbling backwards as his hooded, dark eyes pierced hers. Then he was gone, bustling through the crowd as a slower beat started up.

"_Hello little boys, little toys.  
We're the dreams you're believing."_

Shaking away the glare of the lights and the breathless feeling, Hitomi cleared her throat as a way to prepare herself for the dive into the crowd, then stepped forward. It was worse than she had thought. The ocean of people swayed non-stop and the sweltering, stuffy air cut away the oxygen to her brain. It was chaos, it was a dark abyss of swarming heat. Dark eyes glittered purple and green at her. They looked almost like demons, but still the sea carried her any which way, enveloping her and threatening to carry poor Hitomi down to the depths. As she fought for air, the waves carried her to the wall, where at least she had a foot of breathing space. Taking in slow breaths as if she had suffered a shock, Hitomi leaned her head back against the corner of the wall, calming her heart.

"_Crawling up the walls,  
__Running down your face.  
__Razor sharp, razor clean,"_

Finally, the girl dared to open her eyes once more. The mass was as crowded as before, unaware of spitting out the helpless Hitomi into the semi-safe space by the wall. The music was louder here, and the girl could make out the words past the dizzying beat which was filling her eardrums. Shivering, even thought she could feel the sweat on her arms and bare legs, Hitomi looked down at the floor and allowed her shallow breathing to keep her calm.

"_Feel the weapon's sensation  
__On your back...  
__With loaded guns."_

As the music grew louder and Hitomi's resolve to get out of the raging crowd firmed, an unexpected presence entered her safe little bubble. She looked up and once again, her breath left her.

His dark eyes, closer now, were shining. They were a deep brown, almost crimson in the dim light of the club, and there was a look of passion in them that Hitomi couldn't exactly read. The pools of amber ensnared her emerald eyes, enveloped her very being, trapped her there. Slowly, his face carrying no expression but sporting a few beads of sweat, the man raised his hand, offering it to her.

"_Now hold onto me pretty baby. If you want to fly.  
__I'm gonna melt the fever, sugar. Rolling back your eyes."_

All thoughts were swept from her brain. The rave music filtered in, replacing common sense with something… something Hitomi couldn't name. Biting her lip with apprehension, finding that her vocal cords were knotted together, she shakily accepted his hand. It was warm.

"_We're gonna ride the race cars.  
__We're gonna dance on fire.  
__We're the girls Le Disko.  
__Supersonic overdrive."_

Now the ocean of people accepted her, and the man eased her into the depths, holding her close as his arms snaked around her waist, pulling her in. Beyond thinking, beyond anything, Hitomi allowed herself to be swept away. Her fingers ran through his mane of hair. It was damp with sweat, but Hitomi didn't care. If anything, it raised her enthrallment.

The two were so close, clutching at each other in an ocean of dancing bodies; Hitomi could feel his husky breath against her cheek. His hands traveled gently from her hips, up her sides, down her arms, never losing beat of the music, letting himself go, but still remaining in tune enough to keep Hitomi afloat. They spoke no words, but they didn't need to.

"_So what's it gonna take?  
Silver shadow believer,  
Spock rocker with your dirty eyes."_

The girl was unaware of everything but him and the beat. He was there; he would keep her safe in the chaotic, throbbing hulk of people. Their eyes met occasionally, and then they would close. The other senses took over. Touch of him, his hands, their bodies molded together. Hearing his soft breath, the pulsing music, the addictive tempo. The smell of his cologne, his hair gel, and sweat. Taste remained silent, registering nothing.

Her slow breath shuddered briefly as his hands briefly slid underneath her shirt, grazing her smooth stomach, then down to her outside thighs, but it was all in the heat of the moment, he went no farther. Hitomi was hooked. Addicted. This guy… she didn't even know his name, but she knew… he could do no wrong.

"_It's a chance, gonna move.  
Gonna fuck up your ego.  
Silly boy, gonna make you cry."_

Once again, time passed unnoticed. She didn't know what had happened, but they were back at the wall. The solid surface made contact with her damp back and her brains struggled to come to focus again, but the music kept it back. Hitomi's eyes, glazed over, and her breath coming in slowly, she watched through a haze as he came closer.

He pinned her softly against the wall, his face inches away from hers as those wonderful hands came up to run down her cheeks, leaving a trail of sparkling electricity in Hitomi's face.

"_Now hold onto me, pretty baby. If you want to fly.  
__I'm gonna melt the fever, sugar. Rolling back your eyes."_

They were both breathing heavily, shaken from the dance, but still their eye-contact didn't break. Hitomi's arms dropped to her sides as she contentedly leaned against the wall, her eyes wide. With no change of expression, he dipped in and pressed his lips to hers in a gentle kiss.

Still, the dazed girl had not returned to reality. Pleasure overwhelmed her and she eagerly returned the kiss, but the guy pulled away unexpectedly. It seemed, for a brief moment, that he was about to say something. Hitomi closed her eyes for a brief moment, expecting to hear something, but all she heard was the start of the next song. With a gasp, snapping open her eyelids, the comforting presence of _him_… he was gone.

"_We're gonna ride the race cars.  
We're gonna dance on fire.  
We're the girls Le Disko.  
Supersonic overdrive."_

Gulping air as if she had emerged from an over-exerting track practice, Hitomi stumbled out from the dance floor. Cool air caressed her sweat-covered skin, causing it to tingle pleasantly as her body-temperature changed and her mind broke free from the addicting music and tossed Hitomi back into real time.

"Hitomi? So? How was it?" Yukari's beaming face popped up before her.

"… different. But let's not do this anymore, ok, Yukari?" stuttered Hitomi, slicking back her damp hair. Shoving the memory of the past ten minutes back into her brain, the track-runner grabbed her friend's hand, announcing that a round of drinks was in order.

"_If what they say is true...  
You're a boy - and I'm a girl  
I will never fall in love with you."_


	2. Supersonic Overdrive

**Le Disko

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**

"_Hitomi? So? How was it?" Yukari's beaming face popped up before her._

"… _different. But let's not do this anymore, ok, Yukari?" stuttered Hitomi, slicking back her damp hair. Shoving the memory of the past ten minutes back into her brain, the track-runner grabbed her friend's hand, announcing that a round of drinks was in order._

The track runner snickered, downing another shot of... well, something or other. Yukari was watching with a shocked impression, but Hitomi didn't notice. She didn't notice anything at all, being too busy with her own muddled thoughts.

The night had worn on, but the music and lights were still going strong. Midnight had come and gone, but Hitomi barely even realized. Sweaty, her heart racing in her chest, the tomboy had allowed Yukari to treat her to a different amount of drinks. The red-head had conveniently forgotten, however, that Hitomi didn't drink. After ten full rounds, however, she was beginning to have her doubts.

"I'll have... _hic_... another..." Kanzaki slurred, grinning blearily at the bartender. He eyed her for a moment before sliding another full glass to the girl. She was, after all, a paying customer. Or her buddy was, anyway.

_She's completely drunk... what have I done? _Yukari mused, taking a sip of her martini as her friend dissolved into another random fit of giggles, her cheeks pink and eyes completely unfocused. This wasn't what she had had in mind when she had told the girl to loosen up. Hitomi, being an athlete, usually stayed away from alcohol. The poor prude had gone and drunken herself into a stupor. Even worse, she was a mood-swing changing drunk. One minute, she was giddy, the next minute she was brooding.

Hitomi failed to see Yukari's gaze of concern, however. The little drinkies were taking care of that. The more glasses she had, the better her mood got. Everything was great. She was having a ball.

"_No, actually, you're not..."_ the sensible side of Tomi interjected, fighting against the powerful influence of the alcohol.

With a scowl, the girl finished off her drink, adding in a mumble to herself, "Shut up, you..."

In hope of distracting her from another round, Yukari nudged her friend. "So, meet any hot guys on the dance floor, 'Tomi?"

The drunken college student hesitated for a moment, staring down with a gloomy impression into her empty glass before sniffling and shaking her head vigorously. "Yes."

"Oh, really? Did you catch his name?"

A nod. "No."

"Hitomi, you're hopeless." With a sigh, Yukari turned back to her martini.

Weakly snickering, Kanzaki grabbed a full glass from the bartender and downed it in one gulp. A few drinks ago, she had come to the conclusion that the guy in the red shirt she had danced with had been a vivid result of her imagination. That was the only explanation. While she had still been sober, her keen eyes had kept up a regular scanning of the crowd, but the guy never showed up again. In fact, the whole dance with him had felt so ethereal that it only convinced her further that it had all been in her head.

After realizing how stupid she must have looked, dancing with an invisible person on the dance floor, Hitomi decided quickly to drink it off by chugging a few more glasses. Her entire outlook on alcohol had changed after that. It wasn't an addictive drink. Definitely not. It was nice, relaxing... it just washed her emotions away.

"Nice_...hic... _drinkies."She smiled, looking down at the collection of empty glasses she had started.

By now, her imagination was running rampant. That made-up guy? She was rather proud of herself for making him up in such vibrant detail, but he needed a name. Steve. No. Hiroshi. That was a good name. It matched perfectly with his unruly black hair and dark brown eyes... Hitomi's eyes began to slump.

Those eyes... brown as a vat of chocolate. She certainly wouldn't mind Hiroshi covered in chocolate. A giggle escaped her slack lips as her head began to droop forward. _With those strong arms and light jeans..._the table was getting closer and closer. _Wonder if Hiroshi will ever come back... _

"Hitomi! C'mon, let's go home..." Yukari's voice blew Hitomi's daydreams into piece as she wrenched the drunken girl up from the bar stool.

"No... need more... _hic_... drinksh..." mumbled the track runner, sniffling as she reached out in vain for her half-full glass of alcohol.

Yukari would not be dissuaded, though. Her care for her friend was stronger than that. "You're drunk, Hitomi, you need to go home."

A strong hand squeezed Hitomi's wrist, but the green-eyed girl hardly cared. She couldn't see straight. Everything was blurred into a lot of flashing lights and techno music. The hand pulled her along past dark figures and Hitomi stumbled after the bobbing red hair a few feet away. "Not..._hic_... drunks."

Nevertheless, Hitomi allowed her best friend to drag her along towards the exit, giggling and hiccupping along the way. It seemed like that strong grip around her wrist wouldn't ever loosen, when it suddenly disappeared. Yukari had dropped a glow stick. With a shrill giggle, Hitomi stumbled off, not thinking clearly. Maybe she could go have a few more sips of ... whatever she had been drinking. Maybe Hiroshi would come back.

That was when the alcohol hit her at full force, washing over her nullified brain and numbing her senses. She fumbled and tripped, too intoxicated to stop herself. A nap on the ground wouldn't be that bad, anyway.

A happy go lucky j-pop song started up in the background. The high-pitched Japanese voice pierced her buzzing eardrums and she hiccupped again in mid-fall. The kind floor came rushing up to meet her and a little sense of logic sparked in her brain, informing her that the impact would hurt. _Oh well_. Her drunk self was beyond caring.

Resigned as she was to her fate, it took Hitomi a good few seconds to realize that she wasn't about to fall over onto the floor anytime soon. No, a rather warm body had stepped into her way and she flopped into that, instead.

Her weak fingers scrabbled along the unsteady surface of a firm chest for a hold, confirming that whoever she had fallen into was a guy. As she grasped onto his shirt and her knees buckled, steadying arms looped around her waist, holding her up.

A soft breath fluttered over her ear. "Easy there..."

Her breath hitched in her chest, Hitomi shakily raised her eyes to meet dark brown ones. _Vats of chocolate... Hiroshi?_ He was smiling gently. In response, Hitomi hiccupped and her eyes rolled into the back of her head, passing clean out.

* * *

Hmm. So all of you convinced me to un-One shot this and turn it into an actual story. In all honesty, I don't know where I'm going with this one, but... eh.

I considered going further with this, but laziness got the better of me. Sorry, guys.

Thanks for all of your reviews! You guys have no idea how much I adore reviews. They are my fuel, my air, my boosts to keep living.

So please don't forget to review! Tell me where you want this story to go, anything I need to improve... anything! I am good to my reviews, I geev j00 candeh.

**majka**- Yes, thanks, I tried to create a hot atmosphere in the first chapter xD I'm glad you liked it!

**f-zelda­- **Alright, alright, no one shot! xDD So they met again, y'see? Sooner than expected.

**aan**- Why, thank you! I'm happy you liked it.

**Missing White Wings 15**- I hadn't actually planned for the whole "imagination" thing, but your review got me thinking, so I suppose it's thanks to you that I got most of this chapter written on your idea, so thanks! But no, he's 100 percent real.

**EsCaFReaK101B- **Thou hath asked for more, thou hath received more. W00t! Thanks for your review!

**darkmist101**- ZOMG! Please don't die, I will continue for you!

**Aga**- I'm so unused to people wanting a continuation so desperately xD Thank you! I'll keep writing. I'll try to keep it amazing and wonderful xD I hope I don't let you guys down.

**fireangel621**- Thanks for reviewing, I'm happy that you like my story!

**rukz**- I felt guilty that everyone wanted another chapter, so here. No more leaving you guys hanging!

**boo**- Thank you for your review!

**CapT.Black**- Yes, another Esca fic! I can't help myself, ok? The Van Helsing fic... mmm. It'll still in the works. I'm not too sure about it now. My plot kinda disintegrated for that one.


	3. Melt the Fever

**Le Disko

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**

_A soft breath fluttered over her ear. "Easy there..."_

_Her breath hitched in her chest, Hitomi shakily raised her eyes to meet dark brown ones. _Vats of chocolate... Hiroshi?_ He was smiling gently. In response, Hitomi hiccupped and her eyes rolled into the back of her head, passing clean out._

A swirl of a pounding techno beat and a dizzying swirl of colors and flashing lights were circling around Hitomi's head. Definitely not the best thing for a hangover. With a groan, the girl clawed her way out of the dream. Reluctantly, the images receded, but, to her surprise, the music did not.

With another whimper of pain, Hitomi slid her heavy eyelids open. The light in the room stung and another wave of agony washed over brain. A hangover? What was going on? Bits and pieces of the previous night came back to her. The dance club, the guy in the red shirt, and the alcohol.

"Oh my god..." She muttered softly, her voice cracking painfully. How much had she drunk? The last thing she remembered was maybe her third glass... then everything was a bit of a blur. And Yukari knew that she couldn't hold her liquor...

Speaking of Yukari, where was that girl? And where was she, for that matter?

Blinking, Hitomi managed to drag herself into a bit of a sitting up position. Her head felt ten times heavier. As she took in what was around her, the soft music that she had woken up to filtered into her buzzing ears again.

"_Last night I had a dream about you.  
In this dream I'm dancing right beside you.  
And it looked like everyone was having fun,  
the kind of feeling I've waited so long..."_

It seemed that someone had left the stereo on. She glanced over at it, then proceeded to look around and acquaint herself with her surroundings. The complete left side of the room was curtained off. Probably windows. The bed she was laying in had dark red sheets. In fact, the entire theme for the room was an obvious deep crimson. While the paint on the walls was white, the designer had decided to accent everything in the blood-like color.

Hitomi frowned. This was definitely not her room, nor was it Yukari's. If not for her dulled senses, she would probably have started panicking and perhaps screaming right away. As it was, all Hitomi could manage was a slightly annoyed sigh.

"_Don't stop. Come a little closer.  
As we jam, the rhythm gets stronger.  
There's nothing wrong with just a little, little fun.  
We were dancing all night long..."_

Looking down at herself, she was relieved to see that she was at least still dressed in the clothes from the night before. Maybe she could just quietly sneak out...

There was a door directly across from the bed, and another to the right. She could try both. Determined to make her escape, Hitomi grunted and attempted to lift herself into an upright position. Her body protested, reminding the track runner that the hangover was still going strong. Feeling sluggish, weak, and a bit sick to her stomach, Hitomi decided that it was probably better to settle back for a little while.

Resigned to her fate, Hitomi ran a trembling hand through her messy hair and lay back against the soft pile of pillows that she had been sleeping in earlier. She suddenly felt tired.

"_Wonder what time it is..."_ She thought to herself as her eyes fluttered shut. The song in the background continued to play softly, and this time, Hitomi listening, taking in the lyrics.

"_The time is right to put my arms around you.  
You're feeling right, you wrap your arms around too.  
But suddenly I feel the shining sun.  
Before I knew it, this dream was all gone."_

Almost against her will, Hitomi's mind drifted off back to the previous night. The dancing. The kiss with ... well, whoever he was.

She could feel herself drifting off, and didn't bother fighting it. Sleeping off the hangover was probably her only option in this case, anyway.

Naturally, someone found it necessary to wake up before she fell asleep. The door softly opened and there was a sudden cheerful yell.

"HITOMI, YOU'RE AWAKE!"

The scream stabbed into her head. Hitomi let out a gasp of pain, opening one eye to see Yukari beaming at her from the doorway across from the bed. The red-head skipped forward to sit down at the edge of the bed.

"I was so worried! You looked like a mess, but it's lucky that you slept most of the booze off... how do you feel?" She beamed, not noticing Hitomi's repeated winces at the loud noises.

Awake now, Hitomi pulled herself up again. "I feel like I've been run over repeatedly by a truck, then had my head smashed in. Where are-"

A soft voice interrupted her from the doorway. "So, sleeping beauty finally woke up, huh?"

Hitomi stuttered to a halt before she could finish her sentence and froze, cautiously lifting her eyes to look past Yukari. She blinked once or twice just to make sure she wasn't hallucinating. She wasn't. _He_ was smirking at her from the doorway that he was leaning against. There was no doubt about it. It was the guy from last night. Which meant that this was _his_ place... and she was sitting in _his _bed...

"_Ooh... I don't know what to do.  
About this dream and you.  
I wish this dream comes true..."_

Her heart sped up and her breath caught so painfully in her chest that she almost choked. A gasp escaped her constricted lungs as she sat up, then she clapped a hand to her forehead in pain as the headache reared up in protest. Unfortunately, her hand came speeding up too fast because of her shock and nervousness. As her palm smacked into her face, another blast of white-hot throbbing pummeled her sore brain and she doubled over, cradling her head in both hands. Lovely.

"Ow ow ow..." She whimpered, wishing both the man and the headache away as her cheeks turned bright red in embarrassment.

"Hitomi, you klutz..." Yukari laughed softly, peering at her.

"_Why don't you play the game?"_

Meanwhile, the song in the background was winding down to the last few notes. The mystery boy softly crossed over to his stereo, shutting it off. The sudden absence of music made Hitomi peer up out of curiosity and the sight of the messy black hair and swirling brown eyes that were making their way over to her brought up another feeling, this time, in her stomach.

Nausea.

Hitomi's eyes widened in silent terror at the thought of throwing up all over the place, and Yukari seemed to catch it as well.

She pointed, looking alarmed now. "Bathroom's on your right."

Not needing any more persuasion, Hitomi bounded from the bed and sprinted to the door she had noticed before, sluggishness and hangover be damned.

The door had barely slammed behind her, but Hitomi was already retching and heaving into the toilet, grateful that her hair was short and she didn't need anyone to hold it back.

After the first attack had passed, Hitomi took in deep breaths, flushing in shame as she flushed the toilet. The thought of how the guy must be thinking about her right now, throwing up after chugging down enough alcohol to render her completely intoxicated... with a shudder, Hitomi gagged and heaved again, closing her eyes.

Finally, she was done. Feeling drained and disgusted with herself, Hitomi flushed the toilet a second time before shakily standing and heading over to the spotless sink. Not bothering to wait for the water to turn warm, she rinsed her mouth of the taste of vomit and also washed her face to completely wake herself up.

Not up to going back outside to face _him_, the track runner instead sat down by the doorway, wiping her face and hands on a nearby towel. Thinking back to how she had run out of the room, her cheeks turned bright with embarrassment as a knot wrenched in her stomach. She probably would have sat there longer, resisting the urge to throw up again, if the guy hadn't decided to talk to her through the door.

He didn't sound angry or disappointed, but amused. "Y'know, usually when someone drinks too much, they throw up before they get hung over. Looks like you didn't get so lucky. You feeling ok?"

Hitomi gulped. His voice brought back the images of them dancing together. Whatever had remained of her purged stomach dropped to her feet. "Y-yeah..."

"Good." The door next to her opened and the guy poked his head in, blinking down at her. "Let's get you back to bed. You look terrible."

Before Hitomi could even protest, he had lifted her up from the floor and began carrying her back to the bedroom. As hard as she tried, she couldn't ignore the firm arms tucked underneath her knees and the small of her back, or how close he was. Feeling another bout of nausea, the brunette could only groan and clench her eyes shut, fighting off the urge to gag. Breathing in deeply, she was surprised to find a comforting smell. _He_ smelled strangely like green meadows and clear fields... Hitomi found it soothing as the scent imprinted itself into her mind.

As he set her down on the bed, he flashed her a small grin. The depths of his auburn eyes swirled around her own green eyes, capturing her. The bed sank slightly as he sat down next to Hitomi. "My name's Van."

Hitomi's heart stuttered to a stop. Van. His name was Van. It definitely matched his eyes... his hair... that rare smile of his...

Realizing that her mouth was hanging open in awe, she quickly gathered her wits about her, ignoring the constant pounding in her head and the gut-wrenching knot that was still dominant in her stomach. "I-I'm Hitomi. Hitomi Kanzaki."

He leaned in closer, his arms propping him up on either side of her. "Your friend Yukari's probably gone to make you same anti-hangover concoction." He murmured softly.

Hitomi nearly swooned as she watched an amused smile tug at the ends of his mouth. "Th-that's Yukari.. f-for you."

His warm breath fluttered gently across her cheek. Luckily, the nauseous feeling was gone now, replaced by a numb sort of feeling. Hitomi held her breath, a bright blush spreading across her cheeks. "Van?"

His face was inches from hers and any second now, his lips would collide. Any second... three... two... one...

"'TOMI!" Yukari cheerfully burst back into the room, then stopped dead as she registered what she was seeing. "Eh.. I hope I wasn't interrupting anything."

Almost lazily, Van pulled back from his perch atop Hitomi and stood, looking for all the world like he hadn't been interrupted from kissing the stunned girl on the bed. "No, nothing, Miss Yukari. Make yourselves at home, you two."

With a brief smile and a wave, he left, leaving Hitomi to splutter and, as soon as the door closed behind him, sprint back to the bathroom.

* * *

Phew. And I mean phew. I haven't updated in ever. Mostly because... well, I didn't feel like it. And I had swimming and school and I was sick and ... blah blah blah, but I finally decided to update. And nevar fear, it's still Suicidal Hitomi... just not.

I'm still torn on whether or not to make this a total AU with no Gaia involved whatsoever, or tie it in somehow. We'll see.

Props to Daft Punk and the song. I love "Digital Love". Squee. In case you haven't noticed, I'm gonna make lyrics and music references a lot in this story. S'all good.

Know what else I love? Reviews. They're delicious. -cough-

**rukz**- I'll work on not making it dramatic or complicated. I don't write dramas well, anyway.

**Missing White Wings 15- **Nu, Van is totally real. Hitomi was just a little bit drunk and thought he wasn't real. Alcohol can do that to you xDD

**fzelda-** Now you know where she woke up! Yay! Hiroshi is the name Hitomi made up for Van. She was well, one, drunk. And two, she didn't know what his real name was, and seeing as she didn't think he was real in the first place, she decided that naming him wouldn't do any harm. But he's real, so.. well, Hiroshi's gone. I'm sorry if that confused you xD And I will probably make Van older. Thanks for reviewing!

**Aga-** Really? WHATEVER I write? Haha, I wish. Thanks for reviewing, I'm glad you like my fic!

**CapT. Black- **... Tokyo Pop? What? Ok. I'll see what I can do for that Van Helsing fic mmkay?

Also thanks to darkangel, boo, darkmist101, and EsCaFReaK101 for their reviews!


	4. Hold Onto Me

**Le Disko

* * *

**

Hitomi scowled, trying to look as irritated as one could be while suffering from a massive headache and sipping at a nauseatingly bitter hangover remedy.

"What'd you put into this, Yukari?" She muttered, taking another gulp and wincing as the acrid concoction burned her throat.

The two had settled down in Van's bedroom, Hitomi to drink the potion Yukari had made her, and Yukari to explain what exactly was going on.

The red-head sitting at the end of the bed beamed, fixing the overlarge sweat pants that were in danger of riding very low on her hips. A pair of dull blue flannel pants and a sweatshirt were placed alongside her. Those were Hitomi's, she had explained. Van, (being the amazing guy that he is) realized that their dance-club outfits probably weren't the most comfortable or warm, so he had lent some of his smaller articles of clothing. It was winter-time, after all.

"The best stuff that Van's kitchen could offer!" Yukari was more than eager to name off the ingredients, counting off on her fingers, "Coffee, and tea, and cough syrup, and lemon juice, and vinegar, and-" With a disgusted splutter, Hitomi hastily set aside the rest of the drink.

"I regret asking..." The track-star made a disgusted face, scraping the top of her tongue with her teeth in an attempt to rid herself of the taste. She then grabbed the glass of water she had poured herself earlier, draining it in one gulp to drown out the aftertaste.

Yukari pouted, tossing Van's extra clothes into her friend's lap. "Aw, c'mon, it wasn't that bad! And here, put these on. I'm sure you don't want to be wandering around in that cute mini-skirt and top. Although Van probably wouldn't mind..."

At the mention of Van's name in that context, Hitomi blushed brightly. With an indignant grab at the spare clothes, she stood to change, albeit slowly in order to accommodate her hangover. Ignoring Yukari's knowing grin, she changed the topic, "Oh, so you're on first name terms with him, huh?"

"We-ell..." Yukari put a finger to her chin thoughtfully. "When he told me his name, I did call him Fanel-sama. But he just laughed and said that it made him sound too much like an adult, so he told me to just call him Van..."

Hitomi "hmm"-ed in response, peeling off the tight tank top with a bit of difficulty. She was more than happy to change out of her current clothes. "_How Yukari managed to squeeze me into something so tight is still beyond me... I miss my track suits..." _

Still seated on the bed, the red head watched amusedly as her friend changed. "He's a senior, y'know. Last year of college..." She sighed, running a hand through her locks, "He's so cute, too. I swear, of all the people you could've chosen to pass out on, you got the hottest guy in the club. I don't know how you managed it."

"We've... met briefly." Hitomi disclosed hesitatively, slipping into the black sweatshirt that smelled familiar and pleasant. Van's smell. The sleeves went just past the tips of her fingers, and the bottom of the garment stopped about half-way to her thighs, but it was soft and warm, so she supposed she could deal.

"You _have?_" Yukari shrieked in a scandalized tone, sitting up straight as Hitomi winced in pain. "Wait! Hold on a minute! You told me you danced with a guy before you went over to the bar! The one whose name you didn't know!" She lowered her voice to a dramatic whisper. "Was that him?"

Hitomi Kanzaki took one look at the girl's wide, curious eyes before tugging down her skirt and tossing it into a pile with her shirt. "Yeah. That was him. Except now I know his name is Van Fanel and that I made a completely idiot of myself in front of him..."

With a soft sigh, she proceeded to pull on the comfy pants, securely tying the drawstring so that they wouldn't slip past her hips. "... so now it's your time to spill. Why are we staying at Van's instead of heading back to our dorm? We have classes tomorrow."

The wicked grin remained plastered on Yukari's face as she rose to her feet and walked over to the curtained, ceiling to floor windows on the far side of the room. With a firm yank, she shoved the crimson drapes to either ends of the wall, revealing the outside view. "That's why."

Hitomi's mouth dropped as slowly, in a very jerky fashion, she moved to stand beside her companion and stare at the world outside.

Everything was covered in a thick, flurry blanket of _white_. Snow. And it was still snowing heavily, smothering everything in its utter _whiteness_. A blizzard. Hitomi moaned, leaning forward to rest her forehead against the cold glass of the window. "_The fates hate me."_

Yukari, on the other hand, seemed to be completely ecstatic about the situation. "Isn't it great? Van said that since we're snowed in, we can stay here as long as we have to. Classes are probably gonna be canceled tomorrow, anyway..."

But the words had little effect on Hitomi's frazzled brain. In her opinion, thing couldn't be any worse. She was not completely stuck in an apartment with the guy who had danced with her at the club. _He even kissed her_. And how had she repaid him? By passing out on him, stone-drunk. Not only that, but she had continued to throw up all over the place in his bathroom, sleep in his bed, wear his nice-smelling clothes and be a constant presence in his home.

In any other case, Hitomi might have screamed in frustration and horror, but at this point, all she could manage was a deep, calming sigh. "So why are we here, and not at our dorm?"

Yukari looked like she had been waiting to hear that question all along.

"Funny you should ask that! Ok, well, I had just caught up to you when you conked out, and Van seemed to be totally cool with that... I told him to just help me take you outside so I could call a cab, 'cause, y'know, Amano wasn't expecting us that early..." She paused briefly to grin at the mention of Amano before continuing, "But when we got outside, it started out snow! Who could've seen that coming?"

"To think, snow in the middle of January." Hitomi interrupted, smirking.

"Oh, shush. So in any case, Van said that he could drive us home, but if the weather kept up, we might not reach it in time, because they were starting to close down some streets because it was so dangerous. And while you were moaning and looking ready to throw up, Van came up with the great idea of going to his apartment, which was just a few blocks down. And by then, the snow was _really _coming down and I was freezing!"

Hitomi snorted under her breath. She herself had warned Yukari that going out in such little clothing wouldn't be a good idea and that bringing coats would be wise. Yukari, of course, had screamed about being late and dragged Hitomi out the door into the crisp evening. Snow hadn't really been in the forecast, after all.

"_But who can trust the weather man these days, anyway?"_ Hitomi thought sourly, watching her breath fog up the window as Yukari wrapped up her story.

"Van drove us here. It was already, like, 4:00 in the morning, so he carried you to his bed and I got to sleep in his roommate's bed. Van said something about him not being back until afternoon the next day... and now, here we are! Totally trapped in your hot guy's apartment, and dressed in his clothes, no less. Maybe his roommate is cute...?"

"What do you mean, _my_ hot guy?" Hitomi frowned, pushing away from the window to go and fold her clothes from the other night. Yukari followed after her, giggling.

"Well, he seems to really like you. You should've seen him carry you into bed! It was so cute..." Yukari's mouth split into a smile as she watched a pink color spread through the track-runner's cheeks. "And it seems that you really like him, too!"

Unbidden memories sprang into her head of Van pinning her against the wall, pressing his lips to hers. Flushing, she tossed the neatly folded skirt and shirt onto the edge of the bed before threading her fingers through her hair. "Y-yeah, um, anyway..."

Snickering at Hitomi's lame attempt to change the subject, Yukari grabbed her friend's wrist and dragged her out of the room. "C'mon, I'll give you the tour!"

Hitomi had no choice but to shuffle after the red-head, ignoring the faint headache that still remained as a reminder of her antics from the previous night. As soon as she stepped out of the apartment, however, she realized that this was nothing compared to her college dorm. The floors were wood, and expensive looking, no less, and the walls were decorated with assorted tasteful art, although a lot of it appeared to be Japanese wood block prints.

That was all Hitomi got to catch a glimpse of, however. Yukari continued to drag them down the hallway. "The kitchen's over there... and that's Van's roommate's room. If you keep walking down the hall, that's the front door... and here's the living room!"

With a final step, the two girls appeared in the doorway of the spacious living room, and as it turned out, they were not alone. Two pairs of eyes turn to blink at them.

"Hi, Van! I was just giving Hitomi the tour." Yukari quipped, her voice cheerful as she met the raven-haired boy's eyes.

"Good to see that she's up amongst the living already." Van grinned, losing the surprised look as he turned his attention away from the homework spread on the flat surface of the table where he was sitting. At the same time, his slim fingers came up to slide off the reading glasses that had been perched on his nose.

His deep brown eyes turned to meet hers, but the track runner quickly looked away, flushing and nodding her hello tentatively. "_Van looks hot, even with glasses..."_

"Aw, c'mon, Fanel, not gonna introduce me?" The second person in the room chuckled softly in a deep voice.

That's when Hitomi noticed the second person in the room. He had been sitting across from Van, his back to the girls, but now he turned to get a better look at them. Even Yukari's happy disposition was taken down a notch as her eyes flicked to the stranger.

He was currently in the process of tying his lengthy blonde hair into a high pony tail. His lons bangs, however, remained to fall down and frame his face. It all happened as if he was in slow motion. Languidly, the blonde turned his head to look at the two girls with the brightest blue eyes they had ever seen. And then he _smiled_. At that point, there was a melting ooze of Yukari next to Hitomi.

Van eventually broke the strange spell for Hitomi and smirked, motioning towards the blonde. "This is Allen Schezar. He's my roommate."

Allen's smile widened, looking quite aware that the pair of girls were staring. Or, at least, Yukari still was. "It's a pleasure. Come sit down."

The red-head, almost mechanically, strode forward to sit next to Allen, leaving Hitomi with no choice but to move and settle down by Van's side, which she did with a bright blush. Allen looked curiously at the two of them, eventually settling his gaze on the brunette across from him.

"So you must be Hitomi." He grinned, propping his elbows on the table and perching his chin on his clasped hands.

Squirming slightly in the blonde's piercing gaze, Hitomi managed a weak grin. Her hands unconsciously moved to curl up in her lap as she avoided turning her head to look at Van. "Y-yeah, that's me. Hitomi Kanzaki."

"And you must be the one who spent the night in my room." Allen quirked an elegant eyebrow at Yukari, who now broke out of her trance and grinned.

"Yup! I'm Yukari Uchida."

Van spoke again, leaning back in his chair. "I guess we'll have to get out the pull-out bed from the couch tonight, Allen. The girls need a place to sleep, after all..."

"Oh, no, you don't have to do that!" Hitomi quickly protested, finally turning to meet Van's eyes. Green collided with brown, but the two only stared at each other for a moment before hurriedly turning away with Kanzaki going into another light reddening.

Yukari also wasn't pleased with Van's suggestion. "We wouldn't want to be intruding on your hospitality. After all, we really shouldn't even be here right now... Hitomi and I can sleep on the couch."

"But you're our guests! We can't have you two just sleeping on the couch, it'd be impolite." Fanel laughed softly, one hand coming up to rake through the unruly dark hair of his.

"Well, yes, but-"

"Y'know..." Allen interrupted, shutting Yukari up immediately, "We could argue about this all day, or we can just decide what to do when the time comes. It's barely past noon, anyway."

"That's a good idea..." Hitomi agreed softly with a nod.

Pleased, Allen grinned and imitated Van by leaning back in his chair as well. "It's decided then. So! Tell us a little bit about yourselves, Yukari and Hitomi."

"We-ell..." Exchanging looks with Yukari, Hitomi couldn't help but grin. Already, she was relaxing in the presence of the two boys as a result of the comfortable atmosphere that had been established between them. "Yukari and I both go to the same local college here in Tokyo. I haven't really decided on a major yet, but I've been really into track since high school, so I'm hoping to go somewhere with that. Plus, I'm taking psychiatry and English."

"'Cause all the best track programs are in America!" Yukari cut in with a grin, "Now, I'm actually Hitomi's manager for track, but my major is journalism. What about you two?"

The conversation had taken a turn into college courses, obviously.

"Hmm." Van closed his eyes in thought, tucking his hands behind his head. "I'm majoring in Fine and Studio Art, although I have some other art minors. I'm actually taking English and psychiatry, too."

Hitomi started, failing to hide her surprise at the similar minors, but said nothing. "_It's almost shocking that we have something in common... I didn't even think he was still in college before Yukari told me!"_

Allen, meanwhile, idly brushed some of his bangs back, only to have them fall into place again. "I'm actually majoring in languages. Mostly romance. French, Italian, but I've also dabbled in English and Russian."

Yukari gasped, turning her body to completely face the blonde. "_Tu parle français?"_

"_Eh, oui ,un peu." _Allen chuckled, showing the girl the cover of the book he had been reading before the girls had come in. It was a French textbook. _"Mais, je préfére italien. Français est un peu difficile. Et tu?"_

"_Oui, français est difficile, mais j'adore français quand même. C'est trés beau!" _She continued to babble excitedly in the foreign language, looking almost overjoyed at finding another who spoke French.

A grin spread along Allen's face. _"Peut-etre, tu peux aider moi avec mes devoirs pour français?"_

"_J'aimerais bien!" _Yukari beamed._ "Allons-y!"_

"_Oui, bonne idée." _Allen stood and immediately moved to help the red-head up with one hand, the other scrabbling to pick up his partially finished homework. "We'll see you later, guys."

With a cheery wave, Yukari mouthed 'good luck' to Hitomi before following Allen out of the room, leaving Van and Hitomi in silence to exchange identically perplexed looks before bursting into laughter.

Van wiped away tears of mirth. "Who would've known that Allen would find a kindred spirit in your friend?"

"And in French, no less." Hitomi giggled, sitting back in her seat and covering her mouth with her hand while she snickered. The excess sleeve of the sweatshirt wobbled gently as she shook with laughter.

Eventually, their laughs died down to a quiet mood while in the background, far down the hall, they could hear Allen and Yukari enter one of the rooms and close the door behind them. Thus, the two remaining in the living area were rendered isolated. Still, the snow continued to fall outside.

Hitomi's hands, which at one point had relaxed and settled to rest on the table, were quick to return to her lap, the fingers curled in towards the palm.

Van Fanel caught the motion, however. As the corners of his lips tugged upward slightly in a smile, he kept the pleasure of noting one of the girl's nervous habits to himself. Meanwhile, Hitomi stood and headed over to the nearby window of the living room with the thought of looking at how much it had snowed so far.

A particular picture on the nearby shelf, though, caught her eyes before she even made it to her destination. Her steps slowed as the track runner stopped to stare at the photograph. "This is..."

It was a class picture of her psychiatry class from last year, when they had taken a field trip to the local zoo to "investigate animalistic behaviors." In the end, all of the students had ended up goofing off, but the three professors that taught the subject had insisted on a group picture before they left. Behind all of the grinning young adults was a huge mural of zoo animals. Smiling fondly in remembrance, Hitomi quickly managed to pick out herself and Amano, who were kneeling in the front with cheesy grins and making the "peace" sign with their hands to boot.

"That was a great trip."

Hitomi squeaked in surprise. During her mental musings, Van had managed to sneak over and stand next to her, his shoulder nudging gently against hers. Gulping, and hoping that he hadn't heard, the girl voiced her curiosity. "You came on that?"

"Yeah. Last year, wasn't it? All of the psychiatry classes from the grades went. See, there I am." Van pointed himself out. He was in the back row of students, just barely smirking.

Hitomi stared at the image, eyes wide. _"It's so hard to imagine that this guy, who I just met last night, is even real... not only that, but he goes to my college! Geez, what'd I get myself into...?"_

"And there's Dilandau, too, now that I think about it..."

Hitomi glanced up at the boy beside her. His voice had grown darker at those words. Blinking, she looked back to the picture and identified the one named Dilandau. He wasn't even smiling, but was in the process of rolling his eyes. A few sudden memories rushed back to the girl. "Hey, I remember him! The stupid albino! He was the one that was trying to yell at the monkeys and get them all to fight!"

Fanel snorted, unimpressed. "That's him. We used to be great friends, until he went practically crazy. Starting turning into a pyro and getting obsessed with people worshipping him. Idiot."

For some reason, Hitomi found herself wanting to cheer Van up, so she sought out another picture on the shelf. Eventually, she settled on a posing ... _cat girl_?

Hitomi pointed at the framed photograph. "Who's that?"

"Hmm? Oh, that's Merle. My sister." Van's furrowed brows seemed to ease at the change of subject as he directed his attention at the new photo.

"And, uh... why is she dressed like a cat?"

The topic seemed to amuse the dark-haired teen. He grinned, reaching out to pick up the frame. "She's an anime nerd, so she dragged me along to one of those conventions they have. And that year, she decided to dress up as a cat girl. She even dyed her hair that pink color to match the character and sewed the whole outfit herself. Although, we did buy those ears for her..."

Hitomi couldn't help but smile as well. "So what'd you dress up as?" Van groaned, shaking his head.

"I actually have no idea. Some swordsman guy with wings. I think he was actually a king or something." He took out the back of the frame and peeled away the photograph where it had stuck to the glass. As it turned out, the photograph was folded so that only Merle was shown. Now, Van pulled back the rest of the picture to reveal himself.

"Oh, that's not so bad." Hitomi laughed, looking at the figure. Van was moodily standing beside his sister, his bangs still as long as they were now, falling conveniently over his eyes. The loose-fitting red shirt and brown pants weren't as extravagant in appearance as his sibling's. But to add to the costume, the "swordsman" was carrying a sword over his shoulder and large, white feathered wings appeared to be growing out of his back.

"The wings suit you." She grinned, surprised that the blushes that usually came on at moments like these had died down. Maybe he was growing on her?

Van didn't look so convinced. "Yeah, Merle said the same thing." Nevertheless, when he replaced the photograph into its frame, he didn't bend the picture back, but kept it as it was.

Once again, no one spoke. The pair stood side-by-side, staring at the picture for a moment longer. The girl could feel the heat from Van's body, they were standing so close. How is it that even though they barely knew each other, she could feel so comfortable around him? Now the flush returned. Hands shaking, Hitomi abruptly shifted to finally move to the window and look outside. "It's, uh... still snowing pretty heavily outside."

"Heh, yeah. And here I am, stuck doing English homework. Not that I have anything better to do."

Kanzaki turned around to see that the brown-eyed teen had returned to his seat and was now staring at the spread out worksheets with a hint of disgruntlement in his expression. "Want me to help?"

She didn't wait for an answer, moving to stand by Van's chair and look over the papers. Although she would never admit it, Hitomi loved to help with homework. Especially when she knew the subject perfectly well, and as it so happened, English was one of her best classes.

Van looked up and a gentle smile nearly made Hitomi swoon. His next words threw Hitomi completely for a loop. "You look adorable."

"I-I-what?" Not used to such blatant comments, the girl immediately became flustered and self-aware of the large sweatshirt that was close to falling off of one shoulder and the extremely loose pants. Still, the clean Van smell that was coming from the clothes really was intoxicating. _"Not as good as the real thing, though."_

"You should really wear my clothes more often..." The other murmured, the tone in his voice bordering on husky.

"Fanel-sama, I-"

Her frantic gibbering was cut short with a gasp as a pair of strong arms snuck around her waist and pulled her down. Blinking, she found herself in Van's lap, with Van's face, as it was, frighteningly close to hers. He was grinning, but the expression was soft.

"Call me Van, Hitomi."

Hitomi found that she had no breath in her body, so she simply nodded. Heat spread along her cheeks as she stared into the auburn depths of Van's eyes, frozen in place. It wasn't until the older teen pressed a soft kiss to her lips that she found the voice needed to speak.

She was lucky to get her words out even in a whisper. "Van, what are you doing?"

He stared at her for the longest time before answering. "Dance with me."

"D-dance with you?" She was so startled that the blushing and stuttering were practically flowing from her. Nevertheless, she allowed Van to pull her to her feet. Walking out into an empty space, near the window, the dark-eyed student pulled Hitomi close, lacing his arms back around her waist.

If Amano had tried that, Hitomi would've smacked him. But for whatever reason she couldn't understand, the track runner couldn't convince herself to pull away. The warmth of being held close to Van like that... _"Feels so nice." _Perhaps it was because of last night. Of their intimate dancing at the club. Maybe.

Instead, she shyly wound her arms around the taller boy's neck, burying her bright pink face in his shoulder. "But there's no music."

Even with the words being spoken into his shirt, Van heard. He began gently swaying from side to side, keeping Hitomi close. "We don't need music."

So for a few minutes, the pair continued to sway from side to side. It may have appeared ridiculous or silly. Two seeming strangers slow dancing in a silent room while outside, a blizzard muffled the city in white. Eventually, Hitomi turned her face to the side to look past the glass at the snow. "So why did you do it?"

The question was a bit vague, to be sure. "Hmm?"

"Why did you dance with me last night? Why did you kiss me? And bring me and Yukari to your apartment? Why are we doing this?" All of the thoughts swirling her mind came pouring out at the same time. She didn't bother to put a stopper to the streams of words.

Laughter tickled her ear. "Why are you asking so many questions?"

"... I want to know. We're strangers, we barely know each other." Hitomi answered softly, her eyes lowering to half-mast as she leaned on Van.

"What if I told you that this is fate?" Van said suddenly.

Kanzaki hadn't been expecting anything like that. A faint frown pulled at her lips as they continued to sway. "Fate?"

"What if I told you that it's supposed to be like this?"

"Van, I don't-"

"What if-"

A loud voice broke through their serene moment. "Hey guys, Yukari's agreed to make lunch so-ah! I'll, uh... come back later."

The dancing came to an abrupt stop as the two watched Allen's ponytail bounce out of the view of the doorframe. Hitomi continued to stare at it blankly until Van pulled her back to reality, cupping her face gently in his hands.

"What if I told you that I love you?"

* * *

_Marimo almost wishes she could get drunk, just so she could taste Yukari's hangover remedy._

Note: Japan's legal drinking age is 20, in case there was any confusion on that part. So Hitomi is 20, but she's a sophomore in college. Van's a senior, 22. I kinda incorporated bits of both Japan and American customs into this fic, as I live in America, but wanted to add a Japanese tone to this. I honestly have no idea how colleges work in Japan.

Phew boy. Long chapter. Took me forever to write. Took me forever to update, too, now that I think about it. Ah well! Lotsa Van/Hitomi goodness for you all to enjoy!

Van, as you notice, is a tad OOC in this fic. But that's ok. We're all a bit OOC when we're in lurve xD

Yeah, that was lame. As is Dilandau and his ebil army of monkeys.

REVIEWS:D


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